JOHOR BAHARU, 5 SEPTEMBER, 2010: All 11 Malaysian students who are studying at Lincoln University in Christchurch are safe in the wake of a 7.1 magnitude earthquake hitting the city yesterday.

Higher Education Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin said the Malaysian Students Department in Wellington managed to contact the students, including eight female students, and informed their families of their safety.

"In view of damaged roads and the curfew imposed, MSD officers in Wellington were not allowed to go to Christchurch.

"We are could only contact the students and identify their needs, including Muslim students who are fasting in the month of Ramadan," he said here today.

He urged Malaysian students to register themselves with the department to enable assistance to be rendered to them.

The earthquake, the strongest in 80 years, caused widespread damage in New Zealand’s second largest city and several parts of the South Island.